Circling Promise with Prayer (11x14, acrylic)

I may be finished with this one. I think it's got pretty good flow, it feels right, and I must stop and let it percolate for a few days. What do you think?

 

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Summery start

In this start, I am working with a triad of colours: quinacridome red, hansa yellow, and thalo blue. I'm liking it as a bright, summery colour scheme. Time will tell if I can pull it off so stay tuned for updates on progress over the next week. Happy weekend!

 

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Acrylic WIP, 11x14

I'm working on a canvas that I stretched myself this time. It's an interesting surface - the golden gesso has a lot of grab and a bit more absorbency than other canvasses I've used. I am really enjoying it and I can see a lot of potential for exploration.

In general, here are the steps for these "from chaos" paintings:

• Texture - drizzle tar gel, scrape through masks, stamp various acrylic mediums to make an interesting surface. Dry.

• Transparent glazes - I select 3-5 colors that I've learned will work well together (IMHO) and paint several layers on my textured surface. First layer is diluted with water and typically quite loose. The tar gel and other textures absorbs the paint differently and act as natural barriers as the colours run, making for some interesting patterns. The second and subsequent layers are mixed with glazing fluid and are somewhat thicker fluid. These layers are mental doodling to push and pull the shapes that emerge on the canvas. I'm thinking about composition at this stage.

 

Next step for this painting...

• Translucent and/or opaques - near the end of a painting, the acrylics can be mixed with white. The sky is the limit here... no, seriously! If I need to lighten an area and I feel a transparent would look best, I paint the area white and once dry I glaze over it transparently. Or, if I'm looking for an opaque, I blend the pigment with white. Transluscents are beautiful too... Very thin mixes of white and color can cover an area with a beautiful veil of color.

And now it's time to paint.... Have a great day!

 

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Remember Me (24"x24", mixed media on canvas)

Remember Me roses are so beautiful, and what a name! I believe this one is complete. It's been fun!

Happy Monday!

 

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Roses WIP update

This painting has changed lots since my last post. I must confess some serious frustration with this one! I have no photo reference for it because it began from chaos with my rose stamp. As a result I've struggled between representation (ie roses in vase) and abstraction (as it started out). In other texture and layers I saw the sphere (now a rose bowl) and its evolved from there. However, I've spent a lot of time "up in my head" thinking through light direction, glass, colour, etc. I've enjoyed all the painting and I feel like its coming together for me now, although I have a few things to change before I'm done.

Tomorrow is my birthday. Ron has the day off and we are going into Edmonton to shop and then out for dinner. Delta art has a big sale on and I think dropping by there will be a fun diversion. I have an order waiting for me but I'll definitely have a look around :-).

Enjoy!

 

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Mixed Media start on 24"x 24" canvas

Suffice to say... I'm messing with acrylic mediums, texture tools, and collage. Another beginning from chaos painting. These take a while to evolve - all options are open for a long, long time. It's confusing, messy, and usually ends up like this has...abstracted reality. It kind of resembles life. Have a great day!

 

 

 

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The Gloaming at Sheep River Fall (oil, 24"x24")

I first painted The Gloaming at Sheep River Falls in early 2012 and I hung it in my home in Calgary. I saw it every day and something really bugged me about it. Sometimes it takes me a long time to figure out what I want to change andthat was the case here. Indetermined not to hang it here in Lloydminster until I figured it out. There were just a few minor changes:

• The blue of the sky and water was too warm. I glazed turquoise lightly over the sky and in places on the river.
• The tips of the trees on the left, although lighter, were too warm. These I glazed with an almost grey mix to dull and cool them.
• The foreground rocks were also too warm for this time of day so I toned them with mixes of greens and blues.
• The water spray is in full shadow at this time of day, so my water was far to light and bright. I scumbled the blue and greenish greys into the white water to tone it.

There were a few other tweaks but those were the primary issues. What do you think? I like it much better now than I did before. Have a great day!

 

The Gloaming at Sheep River Falls - before...

 

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Misty Spirit Island (Oil on canvass, 6"x6")

I had a refreshing break from the winter weather when we visited Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico for a week over Easter. This tropical paradise is between Acapulco and Guatamala on the pacific side and has warm, almost guaranteed, weather. We saw one cloud, one day. Mexico moved to develop and protect a large portion of the area as Huatulco National Park in 1998. As a result, the most delicate coastal areas are protected from resort development. Those resorts built south of the national park are limited to just a few of the 18 bays. Although I didn't shop much in Huatulco, I did manage to bring something home from Mexico. However, I'm finally feeling a bit better and I'm back in my studio so - yay! Nothing can make me fall out of love with Mexico. Nothing.

Contrast that with the subject of this little painting...another gorgeous paradise -Jasper National Park. Long snowy winters and short, dry summers, are the norm in Jasper. Spirit Island is an iconic landmark in this area. It's accessible only by tour boat (or canoe/kayak but I don't count that ;-). I visited this gorgeous spot on an overcast day in late September 2007, just days before the end of the tour season. We woke up to a cold, drizzly morning. But, being optimistic about the weather Gregg Johnson, our painting instructor, led us onto the boats. We watched rain stream down the boat windows during our 45 minute ride. But, as we rounded the corner to Spirit Island, a weak sun was attempting to burn off the fog. The color of the water is incredible - more towards emerald than this little painting indicates. Simple put - the place is stunning! A fantastic place for plain air painting and a great reference source as well. Cheers!

 

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